Category Archives: Music

STAGECOACH 2014: Festival announcement due Oct. 10

Trace Adkins performs on Friday, April 26, 2013 at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival. (2013/File Photo)

UPDATE (Thursday, Oct. 10): The Stagecoach Country Music Festival lineup has been announced. Click here to read the announcement.

The Stagecoach Country Music Festival just posted a photo with the words “Thursday 8 AM PDT” on its social media networks.

What is the announcement? Likely the lineup and ticket information for the popular country music festival which takes place at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. The official 2014 haven’t been announced yet, but the festival typically happens after the twin editions of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Coachella is scheduled for April 11-13 and April 18-20, 2014, which makes me think if Stagecoach remains at three days, it will be April 25-27, 2014.

The country festival started in 2007 as a sister event to the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and has hosted the biggest names in country music since its inception, including Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Toby Keith, Keith Urban, Reba McEntire and more.

In 2013, promoter Goldenvoice reined in Stagecoach’s campground partying by limiting the number of RV camping passes, a move that frustrated some fans who enjoyed the camping experience as much as the show.

Goldenvoice senior vice-president Skip Paige said that camping would be expanded at Stagecoach for 2014 in his keynote speech at the State of the County in Palm Springs.

Since Kenny Chesney claims he isn’t touring next summer, and he usually hits up Stagecoach every other year, I am hoping we might get George Strait’s farewell and maybe The Band Perry to head out to Indio.

Who do you want to see at Stagecoach 2014?

Here’s a clip from Dierks Bentley’s performance at Stagecoach 2013.

HEMET: Casey Abrams to play historic theater Nov. 16

Idyllwild native, Casey Abrams performs on Saturday August 31,2013 at the Norco Fair. (Milka Soko/Freelance Photographer)

Casey Abrams, a man and his bass, will be at the Historic Hemet Theater on Nov. 16.

The former “American Idol” contestant, who grew up in Idyllwild, performed a sold out show there earlier this year. He released his self-titled debut album in the summer of 2012.

Abrams will also be releasing a new video this month and will join “Idol” pal Haley Reinhart on Oct. 22 for a performance you can pay to watch online.

The Hemet show has two tiers of tickets. The VIP ticket is $45,before fees, and gets you a reserved seat, a meet and greet and one drink ticket. You also get to enter the show an hour earlier.

The general admission tickets are $25 each, before fees.

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You can pick them up online at www.goldencrownproductions.com. Both ticket types will be upped by $10 if you purchase at the door on the day of the show.

The Hemet performance is being put on by Golden Crown Productions, who team up with local groups for each concert. The show will benefit the Diamond Valley Arts Council.

Golden Crown is also bringing Lee Rocker, of The Stray Cats, to the theater on Dec. 7. Those tickets are also $25 for general admission and $45 for VIP.

The Historic Hemet Theater is located at 216 E. Florida Ave. in Hemet.

COACHELLA 2014: Lineup predictions include The Pixies

The Pixies, from left, Kim Shattuck, Joey Santiago, Black Francis and David Lovering, pose for a portrait in New York. The band will be touring in 2014 and is a likely contender for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. (AP Photo)

Happy Monday and happy start of the official Coachellaology season. I’m putting my money on alternative music gods The Pixies being high up on the lineup at the 2014 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio.

Why?

1. The band, which originally formed in Boston, is back together (minus Kim Deal, plus the amazing Kim Shattuck of The Muffs) and released new material in September.

2. The Pixies have a history at Coachella. The band’s big reunion happened at Coachella back in 2004. In fact, let’s watch “Caribou” from that performance.

3. The band released 2014 tour dates this morning. The band does Northern California and Las Vegas and Arizona in late February, but has no Southern California dates listed. Those cities are typically the neighbors of any SoCal shows when it comes to tour routing. There aren’t even open dates for SoCal shows to be added later.

This is what makes me think The Pixies are a lock for Coachella.

The good news is that with no Central Coast shows listed, either, I think there could be some special Pixies gigs before and in between the twin Coachellas, which are set for April 11-13 and April 18-20, 2014.

4. Never underestimate the power of The Pixies. Most of the bands that have played Coachella over the years wouldn’t exist without The Pixies.

Here’s my biggest question about the band being on the lineup: Are The Pixies strong enough to be a headliner, or are they a better fit as the penultimate act on the main stage? Discuss in the comments below.

I’ve covered the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival since 2007. All of the Coachella prediction posts here are tagged with Coachellaology.

The iGuide also has a Coachella section that has interviews, articles, photos from previous years and more. Want to share your predictions? You can email me at vfranko@pe.com or comment below.

If you want to follow me on social media, I’m at @vanessafranko on Twitter, the Audio File on Facebook and on Google+.

Previous Coachella 2014 picks and ponderings from the Audio File and readers:

Oct. 2, 2013: Paul McCartney, Luscious Jackson
Aug. 2, 2013: Neutral Milk Hotel
June 16, 2013: The Replacements

PIONEERTOWN: Conor Oberst and The Felice Brothers play Oct. 10

The Felice Brothers will play Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace. (Contributed Image)

Indie favorite Conor Oberst heads to the high desert on Thursday, Oct. 10 when he plays Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace along with fellow Coachella fest vets the Felice Brothers.

The show is outdoors and general admission. Doors open at 6 p.m.

8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 10 Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, 760-365-5956, $20.

Visit www.pappyandharriets.com for tickets and more information.

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Here are two drastically different clips from the artists. The first is Oberst solo performing “First Day of My Life.”

Now, here’s the rollicking “Frankie’s Gun” from the Felice Brothers.

PE LIVE: Watch Strangebrew Band’s “Don’t Make Me Wait Long”

Strangebrew Band performs at Hangar 24 in Redlands. (Matt Schoenmann/Freelance Photographer)

Meet Strangebrew Band, the band that pushed PE Live over the 100 video mark since we relaunched the show this spring.

The longtime friends started playing music together after they were teammates on Cal State San Bernardino’s baseball team and have continued to when the time allows around their busy schedules as parents and teachers.

I’m starting something special only for those who signed up for the free weekly PE Live newsletter–subscriber will be the first to see another performance by the artist before it goes out to the public on PE.com. The newsletter is free, prepared and sent by yours truly, and easy to sign up for at http://subscribe.pe.com/pelive.

Here’s “Don’t Make Me Wait Long.”

PE LIVE: Watch Strangebrew’s “Baby It’s Alright”

Strangebrew Band performs at Hangar 24 in Redlands. (Matt Schoenmann/Freelance Photographer)

We reached a really important milestone on PE Live this week–we now have more than 100 videos posted since relaunching the show this spring.

If you haven’t seen PE Live, what we do is have Inland Empire bands answer questions from a nosy reporter (that would be me) and we film a few of their original songs.

We started out in our studio at PE headquarters, but as we’re making changes here, we took it to the road and the folks at Hangar 24 Brewery in Redlands have been so wonderful to let us film during their Wednesday night live music series.

Obviously, the real stars are the incredible musicians who have shared their music with us, not to mention all of you who have taken the time to watch it. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of PE Live so far.

Now, let’s get onto the music. This week’s artist is Strangebrew Band, who have some folk and pop-rock influences and beautiful harmonies.

Check out “Baby It’s Alright” from Redlands-based Strangebrew Band below.

TEMECULA: The Vault hosts Forty Winters, Monsters Scare You

Andrew W.K. will perform at The Vault in Temecula on Oct. 18. Tickets go on sale Wednesday, Aug. 7. (Andrew W.K. official Facebook page)

The Vault in Temecula has some notable shows coming up, including Andrew W.K. on Oct. 18 and Voodoo Glow Skulls on Oct. 31.

This weekend, Forty Winters, A Fight For Life, After Me the Flood, Skies of Iris and The In City View perform on Friday, Oct. 4.

Then, Monsters Scare You, Lion I Am, Victory Heights and Dead Before We Fall will perform on Saturday, Oct. 5.

6:30 p.m. Friday, The Vault, 41607 Enterprise Circle North, Temecula, $10 in advance, $12 at the door, all ages.

6:30 p.m. Saturday, The Vault, $10, all ages.

Visit www.thevaultconcerts.com for more information.

POMONA: Pennywise to play intimate Glass House show

Pennywise will play Pomona in November.

Here’s a cool show to put on the calendar–Pennywise is playing the Glass House in Pomona on Nov. 22.

The influential SoCal punk band is celebrating its 25th anniversary and decided to do a small punk show.

Tickets go on sale Friday, Oct. 4 at noon and are $25 each. The show is all ages. You can pick up tickets via Ticketfly.

If you want an interesting look at Pennywise singer Jim Lindberg, check out “The Other F Word,” a documentary that follows punk rock fathers like Lindberg and Lars Frederiksen from Rancid. I recently caught it on Netflix and it was worth watching.

COACHELLA 2014: Lineup predictions include Paul McCartney, Luscious Jackson

The wind kicks up Sunday evening, April 14, 2013, during Day 3 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. (2013/File Photo)

It’s that time of the year again–with the fall weather and touring schedules starting to appear for 2014, get ready for more frequent 2014 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival predictions, or as I like to call it, Coachellaology.

Coachella returns for a third year of twin editions at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on April 11-13 and April 18-20, 2014 and I’m going with a possible headliner to start today’s predictions.

Paul McCartney is releasing a new album. (Mary McCartney/Contributed Image)

Paul McCartney

Yes, Paul McCartney headlined Coachella back in 2009, but he is also releasing a new album, called “New,” on Oct. 15. New material is always a plus if someone might be headed to Coachella. Another plus is that McCartney has been coming to the festival EVERY year since he performed. Goldenvoice’s Skip Paige mentioned that fun fact during his Coachella Festival-related keynote speech at the recent State of the County address in Palm Springs.

On the other hand, McCartney has become a major music festival regular and it might not be the right fit for an upcoming year when more contemporary bands like Arcade Fire and Coldplay (both of which are previous Coachella headliners) are also releasing new music.

But, he’s still a Beatle, and a Beatle with a new album at that.

Here’s McCartney doing “My Love” and talking about Linda McCartney from Coachella 2009.

If you’re in the Los Angeles area, you can get an early listen of “New” with a special event on Sunday, Oct. 6. The first 400 cars to arrive at the Vineland Drive-In at 443 N. Vineland Ave. in City of Industry will hear the album via the theater’s FM transmitter. The event starts at 7:30 p.m. and the parking lot opens at 6 p.m.

But wait, there’s more. I have another Coachella 2014 prediction for you.

Luscious Jackson has reunited and is making new music. (Doug Seymour/Contributed Image)

Luscious Jackson

Coachella loves a reunion and Coachella loves a reunion with new music even more.

Luscious Jackson was one of those great ’90s bands that captured the alternative nation. Now the New York-based band is back together and making new music. The new album “Magic Hour” (the band’s first in 14 years) will be out Nov. 5.

The band has announced two tour dates so far–Nov. 23 in Philadelphia and Dec. 7 in New York City. These will be Luscious Jackson’s first live shows in more than a decade.

Plus, the new music is really, really good. Check out “Show Us What You Got.”

Want to know what other Coachella predictions I’ve posted so far? Click through the timeline below.

I’ve covered the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival since 2007. All of the Coachella prediction posts here are tagged with Coachellaology.

Want more Coachella goodness? I tag all of my Coachella prediction posts Coachellaology. TheiGuide also has a Coachella section that has interviews, articles, photos from previous years and more. Want to share your predictions? You can email me at vfranko@pe.com or comment below.

If you want to follow me on social media, I’m at @vanessafranko on Twitter, the Audio File on Facebook and on Google+.

Previous Coachella 2014 picks and ponderings from the Audio File and readers:
June 16, 2013: The Replacements
Aug. 2, 2013: Neutral Milk Hotel

MUSIC: Suicide Silence will continue with new singer

Suicide Silence members: Mark Heylman, Dan Kenny and lead singer Mitch Lucker perform on the Extreme Stage during the Mayhem Music Festival at the San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore on Saturday, July 9, 2011. (File Photo)

Suicide Silence, the Riverside-rooted heavy metal band who lost singer Mitch Lucker last year in a motorcycle accident, has announced that the band will go on with a new singer.

The band posted on its official Facebook page “Suicide Silence will continue” with a link to a clip of “You Only Live Once” with the band’s new singer.

However, the band has yet to announce who the new singer is. Metal site Lambgoat has been tipped that Eddie Hermida from All Shall Perish will be Suicide Silence’s the new vocalist.

Hermida performed with the band at the memorial show for Lucker at the Pomona Fox last December. He did “Slaves to Substance” with the band. You can see the performance below. WARNING: There’s plenty of explicit language in the video.

Suicide Silence fans, what do you think? Does the new singer have the chops that Lucker had? Do you think that the band should continue as Suicide Silence or change the name? Are you excited for new music? Let us know in the comments below.